I am also a high school computer teacher, and our building got renovated about three years ago. I was able to ask for lots of goodies too, but be prepared for the contractors to ignore whatever suggestions you make.
That being said, there were a few important elements I insisted on. One is that I could see all the students' screens from a central location. Mostly that meant having all the PCs facing outward against three walls, with me in the middle. This was a huge improvement over the back-to-back rows we had before. The downside is that kids have to turn around if they need to see the board or the teacher.
My class is in the Career and Technical Education school, so I'm training kids to be sysadmins, programmers, and technicians. Due to the nature of the class, we have a central rack with networking equipment that's easy for the kids to crowd around. If this is something you need, make sure there's plenty of space on all sides, and use a cable tray to bring in the wiring. Also, I asked for power to be dropped from the ceiling to the center of the room so we could setup work benches to troubleshoot hardware. (That's one of the things they neglected to give me.)
Natural light is a wonderful thing, but I wouldn't worry too much about glare as long as you don't have shiny glass screens. If students will be sitting in front of these things for an hour or more at a stretch, good (and large) LCD displays will reduce eye strain. Similarly, don't expect kids to sit in crappy chairs for long periods of time. But don't get swivel rolling chairs; they'll just race and spin in them.
Probably the most used piece of technology in my room is the projector. I'd definitely get a decent one and install it where everyone can see it. I also like to be mobile in my lab, so I've got an iPad to walk around with and take notes on student work.
As long as you've got space to spare, give students as much elbow room as possible. High school kids need a little personal space so they don't get on each others' nerves. Also, more space per PC makes it easier for students to work in small groups, as they can gather three or four people around one PC.
I've got some software I'm partial to, as well. It's nice having something like Faronics Insight in the lab, which allows me to monitor what everyone is looking at, limit Internet access, or share my screen with everyone. I'm not tied to that particular brand (thought it's what I'm using right now, and works on PCs and Macs), but rather any software system that has those functions.
My lab is due to be upgraded in a year or two. I might go with laptops if it's in the budget, but we've got to work out accountability (for theft), upgradability, and a few other issues. I certainly wish I had one or two for myself, though.
Yes, even those who abstain by not showing up. Failure to even show up is a vote of no confidence in the system itself...
Slow down there. Failure to vote *can* be such a statement, but I find it to be a rare occurrence for anyone to actively not vote. Lack of voting is the result of apathy, with a pinch of disenfranchisement mixed it.
Voter turnout in the US sucks, and it sucks that it sucks, and it needs to be fixed. I'm no expert on how to fix it, but I've got some ideas that involve marketing to people's ideals about civic pride (or creating those ideals, perhaps.)
I've helped in my share of voter drives, and I serve as the Inspector of a local voting district. Those people that show up feel it's their duty to vote. Those that don't simply don't feel a sense of duty; they feel inconvenienced.
Not to fear, my Google-fu is strong. I tried searching for free books, but I didn't find anything that fit well with my classes. The books were either way, way too far advanced, way too basic, or way too specialized.
I see lots of programming book suggestions in the comments, and considering the resources available for that, I wish I was teaching a programming class. But I'm not. We're much more geared towards admin type work.
However, if you have any specific books that you've found in your Google searching, I'd love to see them.
Perhaps I should have noted in the original question, but the program I teach is considered vocational. I'd love to fast-track my kids to CCNA certs, but that kind of material is above them right now. We pull kids from several surrounding schools for this program, which meets for 2 1/2 hours every morning. The other kids around here are fixing cars or learning to weld in their classes.
If this was a standard high school course, well, I still wouldn't agree with you, but I would take your point.
The books I have do include some helpful information. A NIC is still a NIC, for instance. But they use screenshots from Windows 98 or 2000, describe at length how to deal with IRQs on ISA slots, and expound the virtues of that up-and-comer: USB.
Really, they're hit or miss. I can probably photocopy some choice bits from these things, but they're largely outdated. Again, the *newest* are four years old; the oldest are about ten.
Thanks, but your comment isn't helpful in the slightest. I'm creating my curriculum from scratch every night, and it's completely overwhelming. That's precisely what I'm trying to get away from.
I have three classes with different needs, and in addition to researching and writing lessons each day, I have to grade them, determine what the kids are and aren't learning from my lessons, and make corrections. That's not to say that I won't still be drawing from other resources -- and my own experience -- but a comprehensive book geared towards vocational high school students would be a great boon to them and me.
I've been having my students read these comments, and this one jumped out at them. They're pretty interested in creating a class wiki, so I think we'll give it a go. Thanks for the suggestion!
I don't thing he abstained. I think he was absent. Same result, but I believe the difference is important, especially considering how many votes he's been absent for.
I've seen some chatter on the NANOG list about this. The whole idea of tiered Internet service seems to be something cooked up by some insidious CEO, then other CEOs of big companies caught on, and before you know it, everyone's on the "competing for the extra buck" bandwagon.
Now, being a network admin myself, I have to wonder why the network admins, and other fighters-of-the-good-fight, aren't stepping up and saying, "No, this is a BAD IDEA(tm)."? I don't think it's just because they fear for the loss of their paychecks.
Every service that I can think of that started out pay-per-minute or pay-per-tier has gone by the wayside. Cell phones? You used to have to pay for every kilobyte of data transfer; now the offers are mostly unmetered. Dial-up? Same thing. You used to pay $XX for 20 hours, but not anymore. Seems to me that implementing an extortion-based plan like this is a huge backward step.
One thing I don't have any information on: is this just a US of A idea, or are these things talks happening in Europe, Asia, and elseware too?
Does anyone remeber those slap-on bracelets from the early 90s? They look like an 8" strip of metal, but you slap it as hard as you can on your wrist and it winds around your arm. If they made those in USB, I'd buy a dozen.
Ah, Settlers of Catan. That one goes down in my book as the best board game ever. A perfect combination of luck and strategy, and extrememly replayable. You should try Seafarers of Catan and Cities and Knights.
Also, the third edition of Twilight Empirium just came out. You'll have to drop about $75 on it, but it's a fantastic game. Hexagonal pieces, space combat, very dynamic, lots of ways to win. Expect to commit a few hours to a single game.
Carcasonne also has a few expansions out if you want to consider more with that series.
Although mostly card games, check out Cheapass Games. Lots of bang for the buck.
I use the bartering approach myself. I recently cleaned a load of spyware off of a guy's Windows box and set him up with Firefox. In return, he helped me install a new alternator in my VW bus.
I really like the bartering system. Trading skills, especially around family and friends, seems more politically correct than just asking for money. I think it would make Miss Manners happy.
I used to have a computer in an area with no heating or cooling. I had problems with water condensation on the components as the computer would heat and cool itself. Solution: throw a few packets of silica gel in the case (don't eat them!) They're pretty much free if you just save a couple from shipping cartons, and they'll soak up the extra moisture.
I don't think the problem is with the menu items being dimmed. Indeed, if my menus were constantly changing based on what the program wants me to do, I'd go nuts. The problem is that the user doesn't have any way to find out why the items are disabled.
You ought to be able to right click on a dimmed menu item to get a reason for it being disabled. Or it could have a question mark next to it. Anything!
I own a small store in the local mall that sells poker supplies for home games, so I follow the poker trend with some interest. (Shameless plug: bloomingtonpoker.com) I also play a *lot* of poker, and I'm pretty knowledgable of the poker scene.
Now, I also spent a few years as a network admin before starting a business. I think there are a few factors as to why programmers, or more importantly those with substantial computer skills, make good poker players.
For one thing, computer professionals tend to be more intelligent with numbers, and more comfortable with straight-up theory. One of the hardest things to explain to new players is why you can make exactly the correct decisions and still not win the hand.
Also, programmers and admins don't mind (and in fact rather enjoy) immersing themselves in tedious material to master a subject. The average player will learn the rules of the game and think they know everything there is to know about poker. But there are countless nuances to the game (think pot-odds, check-raising, semi-bluffing) that one needs to read and practice in order to master.
Computer folk are also known to possess refined analytical skills, since we use and hone them everyday.
Now, at our store we get a lot of parents who are concerned that teaching their kids to play poker will give them gambling habits. We turn that around (partially as a selling point, but really the point is honest) and tell them all the skills their kids will learn from it. At the youngest ages, it will teach them to count. For older kids, learning pot-odds is good math, and they're learning to make decisions based on a complilation of many factors. It also gives them social skills to be good winners and good losers. Much like being a programmer is good for playing poker, learning poker at a young age will certainly turn out some good code-monkeys in a few years.
That is the problem with getting somewhere in space. To get there the fastest you have to accelerate continually there till the 1/2 way point, turn the ship around around and use an equal force / fuel to decelerate."
This topic was a key point in the SciFi book "Chasm City" by Alastair Reynolds. The fix? Get rid of mass. Lots of it.
In the book, one of a number of ships jettisoned chambers containing people intened to populate a new planet. This allowed the ship to decelerate faster than it accelerated. Of course, we can't exactly drop pieces of the ship into space; why bring them along to begin with if you don't need them?
Except fuel. Once you burn half your fuel, your mass has already decreased by a large percentage, depending on the type of fuel you're using. You could also drop the tank and the thrusters, as long as you have a seperate system for slowing down facing the other direction (as opposed to turning the ship around).
Salon is running an article about how that cryptic e-mail saying you can enlarge your penis in 10 days may not be what it seems. Portrayed as services to increase length and girth, some voice concerns that some such sites -- most with falsified WHOIS records -- are preying on people's insecuritites to build spam lists. One site in particular, penis-enlargement-guaranteed.com, has the temerity to assume that your penis is small and unsatisfying.
Well, I'm certainly glad Slashdot was so gracious as to inform me that this particular spam was not legitimate. Thanks, guys!
While Transgaming's heart might be in the right place, I don't think they're following the right methods to bring gaming to the Linux community. I'm not the only one, either. Scott Draeker had this to say in his interview about Loki's demise:
The arrival of TransGaming to me is the clearest indication that Loki
failed to jump-start a Linux gaming industry as we'd hoped, because
TransGaming has nothing to do with Linux games. Their message to game
developers is: "Use DirectX and develop for Windows. We'll help you sell
your Windows products to Linux users."
TransGaming's strategy is the same one Corel used in its Linux
applications business. In the end I don't think they'll be any more
successful than Corel was.
Though he seems a little bitter, I agree with the point that he makes. Loki's intentions were to bring gaming to Linux, not Linux to gaming. Loki made a mutual friend of Linux and games; not only did Linux users get a slew of great titles, but it made Linux more appealing in the process. Transgaming, in contrast, is giving us games to play, but it does nothing to help make Linux a mainstream OS to gamers.
Of course, you may argue that if Loki was just porting already-made Windows titles to Linux, it wasn't really doing anything new. But the position gave Loki the opportunity to produce games exclusive to Linux down the road. Transgaming will not have that option on their current path.
I took a trip to Madison, WI this past summer, and got the opportunity to play a deathmatch test with the developers. Needless to say, I got my arse kicked, but that's how most games go for me. Playing with the guys who made the game was a very unique experience, though.
As multi-player goes, I'm getting sick of all the 3D shoot-em-ups out there; there's really a lack of creativity in that field. I was drawn to Rune simply because it was a change of pace to get to fight hand to hand.
Graphics and sound for games nowadays all seem the same, too, and Rune was like any other there. But the gameplay was very different, and it really sets it apart.
We had about 20 people playing a map at any given time. Seems that Rune wasn't prepared for or designed for that. The maps were too small for that many people, and it created a lot of lag, even on a hefty server. Of course, this was just a test game, too.
I haven't played any single player parts yet, but I think I would be more intrigued by that. The game sorta has that feel of being made for single player, and multiplayer was just thrown in hastily to make it complete. I'm sure this would go well at a LAN party for a while, but unlike some other games, I don't think we could play it all night.
Slashdot Mirror
I am also a high school computer teacher, and our building got renovated about three years ago. I was able to ask for lots of goodies too, but be prepared for the contractors to ignore whatever suggestions you make.
That being said, there were a few important elements I insisted on. One is that I could see all the students' screens from a central location. Mostly that meant having all the PCs facing outward against three walls, with me in the middle. This was a huge improvement over the back-to-back rows we had before. The downside is that kids have to turn around if they need to see the board or the teacher.
My class is in the Career and Technical Education school, so I'm training kids to be sysadmins, programmers, and technicians. Due to the nature of the class, we have a central rack with networking equipment that's easy for the kids to crowd around. If this is something you need, make sure there's plenty of space on all sides, and use a cable tray to bring in the wiring. Also, I asked for power to be dropped from the ceiling to the center of the room so we could setup work benches to troubleshoot hardware. (That's one of the things they neglected to give me.)
Natural light is a wonderful thing, but I wouldn't worry too much about glare as long as you don't have shiny glass screens. If students will be sitting in front of these things for an hour or more at a stretch, good (and large) LCD displays will reduce eye strain. Similarly, don't expect kids to sit in crappy chairs for long periods of time. But don't get swivel rolling chairs; they'll just race and spin in them.
Probably the most used piece of technology in my room is the projector. I'd definitely get a decent one and install it where everyone can see it. I also like to be mobile in my lab, so I've got an iPad to walk around with and take notes on student work.
As long as you've got space to spare, give students as much elbow room as possible. High school kids need a little personal space so they don't get on each others' nerves. Also, more space per PC makes it easier for students to work in small groups, as they can gather three or four people around one PC.
I've got some software I'm partial to, as well. It's nice having something like Faronics Insight in the lab, which allows me to monitor what everyone is looking at, limit Internet access, or share my screen with everyone. I'm not tied to that particular brand (thought it's what I'm using right now, and works on PCs and Macs), but rather any software system that has those functions.
My lab is due to be upgraded in a year or two. I might go with laptops if it's in the budget, but we've got to work out accountability (for theft), upgradability, and a few other issues. I certainly wish I had one or two for myself, though.
I hope this helps some.
Yes, even those who abstain by not showing up. Failure to even show up is a vote of no confidence in the system itself...
Slow down there. Failure to vote *can* be such a statement, but I find it to be a rare occurrence for anyone to actively not vote. Lack of voting is the result of apathy, with a pinch of disenfranchisement mixed it.
Voter turnout in the US sucks, and it sucks that it sucks, and it needs to be fixed. I'm no expert on how to fix it, but I've got some ideas that involve marketing to people's ideals about civic pride (or creating those ideals, perhaps.)
I've helped in my share of voter drives, and I serve as the Inspector of a local voting district. Those people that show up feel it's their duty to vote. Those that don't simply don't feel a sense of duty; they feel inconvenienced.
I agree. I remember actually crying when I read the story he wrote for his newborn son.
Every time a read a thoughtful, poetic post from him, I think, "That's how I want to write."
Not to fear, my Google-fu is strong. I tried searching for free books, but I didn't find anything that fit well with my classes. The books were either way, way too far advanced, way too basic, or way too specialized.
I see lots of programming book suggestions in the comments, and considering the resources available for that, I wish I was teaching a programming class. But I'm not. We're much more geared towards admin type work.
However, if you have any specific books that you've found in your Google searching, I'd love to see them.
Perhaps I should have noted in the original question, but the program I teach is considered vocational. I'd love to fast-track my kids to CCNA certs, but that kind of material is above them right now. We pull kids from several surrounding schools for this program, which meets for 2 1/2 hours every morning. The other kids around here are fixing cars or learning to weld in their classes.
If this was a standard high school course, well, I still wouldn't agree with you, but I would take your point.
The books I have do include some helpful information. A NIC is still a NIC, for instance. But they use screenshots from Windows 98 or 2000, describe at length how to deal with IRQs on ISA slots, and expound the virtues of that up-and-comer: USB.
Really, they're hit or miss. I can probably photocopy some choice bits from these things, but they're largely outdated. Again, the *newest* are four years old; the oldest are about ten.
Thanks, but your comment isn't helpful in the slightest. I'm creating my curriculum from scratch every night, and it's completely overwhelming. That's precisely what I'm trying to get away from.
I have three classes with different needs, and in addition to researching and writing lessons each day, I have to grade them, determine what the kids are and aren't learning from my lessons, and make corrections. That's not to say that I won't still be drawing from other resources -- and my own experience -- but a comprehensive book geared towards vocational high school students would be a great boon to them and me.
I've been having my students read these comments, and this one jumped out at them. They're pretty interested in creating a class wiki, so I think we'll give it a go. Thanks for the suggestion!
McCain abstained.
I don't thing he abstained. I think he was absent. Same result, but I believe the difference is important, especially considering how many votes he's been absent for.
I've seen some chatter on the NANOG list about this. The whole idea of tiered Internet service seems to be something cooked up by some insidious CEO, then other CEOs of big companies caught on, and before you know it, everyone's on the "competing for the extra buck" bandwagon.
Now, being a network admin myself, I have to wonder why the network admins, and other fighters-of-the-good-fight, aren't stepping up and saying, "No, this is a BAD IDEA(tm)."? I don't think it's just because they fear for the loss of their paychecks.
Every service that I can think of that started out pay-per-minute or pay-per-tier has gone by the wayside. Cell phones? You used to have to pay for every kilobyte of data transfer; now the offers are mostly unmetered. Dial-up? Same thing. You used to pay $XX for 20 hours, but not anymore. Seems to me that implementing an extortion-based plan like this is a huge backward step.
One thing I don't have any information on: is this just a US of A idea, or are these things talks happening in Europe, Asia, and elseware too?
Does anyone remeber those slap-on bracelets from the early 90s? They look like an 8" strip of metal, but you slap it as hard as you can on your wrist and it winds around your arm. If they made those in USB, I'd buy a dozen.
Ah, Settlers of Catan. That one goes down in my book as the best board game ever. A perfect combination of luck and strategy, and extrememly replayable. You should try Seafarers of Catan and Cities and Knights.
Also, the third edition of Twilight Empirium just came out. You'll have to drop about $75 on it, but it's a fantastic game. Hexagonal pieces, space combat, very dynamic, lots of ways to win. Expect to commit a few hours to a single game.
Carcasonne also has a few expansions out if you want to consider more with that series.
Although mostly card games, check out Cheapass Games. Lots of bang for the buck.
I use the bartering approach myself. I recently cleaned a load of spyware off of a guy's Windows box and set him up with Firefox. In return, he helped me install a new alternator in my VW bus.
I really like the bartering system. Trading skills, especially around family and friends, seems more politically correct than just asking for money. I think it would make Miss Manners happy.
-Ding
Wait, only three consoles? The Phantom is going to be there, right? I mean, c'mon, it's 2005.
I used to have a computer in an area with no heating or cooling. I had problems with water condensation on the components as the computer would heat and cool itself. Solution: throw a few packets of silica gel in the case (don't eat them!) They're pretty much free if you just save a couple from shipping cartons, and they'll soak up the extra moisture.
I don't think the problem is with the menu items being dimmed. Indeed, if my menus were constantly changing based on what the program wants me to do, I'd go nuts. The problem is that the user doesn't have any way to find out why the items are disabled.
You ought to be able to right click on a dimmed menu item to get a reason for it being disabled. Or it could have a question mark next to it. Anything!
I own a small store in the local mall that sells poker supplies for home games, so I follow the poker trend with some interest. (Shameless plug: bloomingtonpoker.com) I also play a *lot* of poker, and I'm pretty knowledgable of the poker scene.
Now, I also spent a few years as a network admin before starting a business. I think there are a few factors as to why programmers, or more importantly those with substantial computer skills, make good poker players.
For one thing, computer professionals tend to be more intelligent with numbers, and more comfortable with straight-up theory. One of the hardest things to explain to new players is why you can make exactly the correct decisions and still not win the hand.
Also, programmers and admins don't mind (and in fact rather enjoy) immersing themselves in tedious material to master a subject. The average player will learn the rules of the game and think they know everything there is to know about poker. But there are countless nuances to the game (think pot-odds, check-raising, semi-bluffing) that one needs to read and practice in order to master.
Computer folk are also known to possess refined analytical skills, since we use and hone them everyday.
Now, at our store we get a lot of parents who are concerned that teaching their kids to play poker will give them gambling habits. We turn that around (partially as a selling point, but really the point is honest) and tell them all the skills their kids will learn from it. At the youngest ages, it will teach them to count. For older kids, learning pot-odds is good math, and they're learning to make decisions based on a complilation of many factors. It also gives them social skills to be good winners and good losers. Much like being a programmer is good for playing poker, learning poker at a young age will certainly turn out some good code-monkeys in a few years.
-Ding
Oh, well, then I guess we're still safe for now...
This topic was a key point in the SciFi book "Chasm City" by Alastair Reynolds. The fix? Get rid of mass. Lots of it.
In the book, one of a number of ships jettisoned chambers containing people intened to populate a new planet. This allowed the ship to decelerate faster than it accelerated. Of course, we can't exactly drop pieces of the ship into space; why bring them along to begin with if you don't need them?
Except fuel. Once you burn half your fuel, your mass has already decreased by a large percentage, depending on the type of fuel you're using. You could also drop the tank and the thrusters, as long as you have a seperate system for slowing down facing the other direction (as opposed to turning the ship around).
"The only way to make music that cannot be copied is to make music that cannot be heard." - Gene Kan
I disagree. And so do the copyrighters.
http://www.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/Music/09/23/uk.sil ence/
Salon is running an article about how that cryptic e-mail saying you can enlarge your penis in 10 days may not be what it seems. Portrayed as services to increase length and girth, some voice concerns that some such sites -- most with falsified WHOIS records -- are preying on people's insecuritites to build spam lists. One site in particular, penis-enlargement-guaranteed.com, has the temerity to assume that your penis is small and unsatisfying.
Well, I'm certainly glad Slashdot was so gracious as to inform me that this particular spam was not legitimate. Thanks, guys!
While Transgaming's heart might be in the right place, I don't think they're following the right methods to bring gaming to the Linux community. I'm not the only one, either. Scott Draeker had this to say in his interview about Loki's demise:
The arrival of TransGaming to me is the clearest indication that Loki failed to jump-start a Linux gaming industry as we'd hoped, because TransGaming has nothing to do with Linux games. Their message to game developers is: "Use DirectX and develop for Windows. We'll help you sell your Windows products to Linux users."
TransGaming's strategy is the same one Corel used in its Linux applications business. In the end I don't think they'll be any more successful than Corel was.
Though he seems a little bitter, I agree with the point that he makes. Loki's intentions were to bring gaming to Linux, not Linux to gaming. Loki made a mutual friend of Linux and games; not only did Linux users get a slew of great titles, but it made Linux more appealing in the process. Transgaming, in contrast, is giving us games to play, but it does nothing to help make Linux a mainstream OS to gamers.
Of course, you may argue that if Loki was just porting already-made Windows titles to Linux, it wasn't really doing anything new. But the position gave Loki the opportunity to produce games exclusive to Linux down the road. Transgaming will not have that option on their current path.
-WetDog
I took a trip to Madison, WI this past summer, and got the opportunity to play a deathmatch test with the developers. Needless to say, I got my arse kicked, but that's how most games go for me. Playing with the guys who made the game was a very unique experience, though.
As multi-player goes, I'm getting sick of all the 3D shoot-em-ups out there; there's really a lack of creativity in that field. I was drawn to Rune simply because it was a change of pace to get to fight hand to hand.
Graphics and sound for games nowadays all seem the same, too, and Rune was like any other there. But the gameplay was very different, and it really sets it apart.
We had about 20 people playing a map at any given time. Seems that Rune wasn't prepared for or designed for that. The maps were too small for that many people, and it created a lot of lag, even on a hefty server. Of course, this was just a test game, too.
I haven't played any single player parts yet, but I think I would be more intrigued by that. The game sorta has that feel of being made for single player, and multiplayer was just thrown in hastily to make it complete. I'm sure this would go well at a LAN party for a while, but unlike some other games, I don't think we could play it all night.
-WetDog
Lewis also provides a link to this "introduction to incompleteness" (a fun subject in itself)
I started writing a paper about this topic once, but I never finished it.
-WetDog
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